Accountable America

Accountable America is a watchdog group led by Tom Mattzie.[]

It previously offered "a $100,000 reward for information about conservative political groups that leads to a conviction or fines for breaking campaign finance or tax laws. ... 'They’re really operating on the assumption that they can remain in the shadows,' Judd Legum, an adviser to the group. 'That’s one of the primary ways to accomplish what we’re looking for. If you can shed some light on these organizations and the people who fund them, you’ll end up with a better result.' The idea is to create a sense of scandal around the groups, said founder Tom Matzzie, previously a key leader of MoveOn.org.

"We really want to ask these donors whether they want to be associated with some of these people," Matzzie said. As an example of the need and potential for the effort, Matzzie pointed to a blog item that the group recently posted to their site describing how the company of Mel Sembler, a board member of the conservative group Freedoms Watch, paid $100,000 to hire a local Florida lobbyist after prompting from a county commissioner, a deal that is now part of a federal investigation. 

On August 7, 2008, the New York Times reported that Accountable America had sent a letter to, "to confront donors to conservative groups, hoping to create a chilling effect that will dry up contributions." Matzzie described the effort as, "going for the jugular." The letter warns: "donors who might be considering giving to right-wing groups [of] legal trouble, public exposure and watchdog groups digging through their lives."

SourceWatch resources

 * Tom Matzzie